Jeff Bezos Muzzles Washington Post Opinion Section
Democracy dies in darkness has become democracy dies for Bezos
The news is dying, and the American people will be less informed because of it. The billionaire class is responsible. The most recent example is Jeff Bezos’s decision to prohibit critical opinion pieces on so-called “personal liberties and free markets.”1 This blatant attempt by a billionaire to suppress critics of capital is yet another example of just how corrupt our media is becoming.
The Directive from Bezos
Earlier this Wednesday, Jeff Bezos, billionaire and executive chairman of Amazon, sent a letter to the Washington Post staff announcing that the opinion section will no longer publish pieces that contradict Bezos’ values of “personal liberty and free markets.” In his announcement on Twitter, Bezos explained:
“We are going to be writing every day in support and defense of two pillars: personal liberties and free markets. We’ll cover other topics too of course, but viewpoints opposing those pillars will be left to be published by others. 2
The decision by Bezos to restrict the Washington Post’s opinion section to a set of predetermined beliefs is not only a sign of the unethical influence of not only the billionaire class—and their desire to suppress anyone critical of their influence—but also the brokenness of our media. Previously, Jeff Bezos had prohibited the Washington Post editorial board from endorsing then-candidate Kamala Harris in a historic overreach by the Post’s owner. 3
Now, he has crossed the line into outright censoring opinion journalists to the point where the Post can’t independently express concerns about the affairs of the day. Whether or not you like the Washington Post is irrelevant. What matters is that the press is free and truly independent.
The Collapsing Press
The press has long struggled to maintain itself. Newspapers around the country have been gutted by private equity firms such as Alden Global Capital and other private equity firms. The Financial Times reported that nearly half of the newspapers in America are owned by a private equity firm or similar hedge funds and firms. 4 Since 2004, an estimated 1,800 newspapers have closed, with journalists losing their jobs and having to move to platforms such as Substack.5
As I explained several years ago:
Into this tragic reality comes Alden Global Capital. For those unfamiliar with this infamous New York Hedge Fund, AGC is one of the most ruthless investment companies in all of the news. They own 97 different newspapers as of 2018 and are notorious for squeezing companies dry of their journalistic value. All while leaving an already struggling industry in the dirt.
In the Bay Area of California, this parasitical relationship was on full display. Through massive cuts and a lack of investment, AGC turned the robust regional news environment into a shell of its former self. What was once a strong but struggling community of sixteen regional papers and a thousand employees was soon turned into a ghost town of a hundred and fifty employees.
The Boston Herald, one of the oldest newspapers, went into bankruptcy in 2017 but was soon facing the ruthless ownership of Alden’s subsidiary, Digital First. The paper that was known for its exposés was soon being gutted like many papers before it. By 2018, the paper had gone from 225 employees fell to 110.
They’ve also bought the largest share of Tribune Publishing, which owned The Chicago Tribune and WGN America. They began to do what they’ve done to many companies before that, firing reporters as much as they could. Heidi Stevens, a former columnist with the Tribune, was soon scrapped despite her popularity. Others like the fierce and unrelenting Dahleen Glanton were also given the boot not long after Alden made its move.
Other newsrooms have tried to fight back. The Denver Post, which has been subject to some of these same cuts that have made Alden so infamous, has revolted through its opinion section, calling on Alden to sell the paper so that it could find a more suitable owner. A Colorado civic organization soon offered 10 million dollars to the company, hoping to protect the Post from Alden’s grip before the city lost its century-old newspaper. 6
Conclusion
The loss of historic newspapers, media outlets and journalistic institutions is not only a threat to the public, but to the very concept of an informed populace. We can’t reasonably make informed decisions as citizens if we don’t have an effective media to inform us. It is that simple. Failure to protect these institutions means leaving Americans less informed and aware of the state of the country. I tried to stand with a good newspaper with strong journalists, but with this decision, I can no longer support the Post.
By deciding to undermine the independence of the Post’s opinion section, Jeff Bezos has exasperated an already devastating process by introducing overt censorship into the mix. It is a complete moral failure that this is allowed.
Jeff Bezos [@JeffBezos], “I Shared This Note with the Washington Post Team This Morning: I’m Writing to Let You Know about a Change Coming to Our Opinion Pages. We Are Going to Be Writing Every Day in Support and Defense of Two Pillars: Personal Liberties and Free Markets. We’ll Cover Other Topics Too,” Tweet, Twitter, February 26, 2025, https://x.com/JeffBezos/status/1894757287052362088.
David Folkenflik, “‘Washington Post’ Flooded by Cancellations after Bezos’ Non-Endorsement Decision : NPR,” NPR, October 29, 2024, https://www.npr.org/2024/10/28/nx-s1-5168416/washington-post-bezos-endorsement-president-cancellations-resignations.
Anna Nicolaou and James Fontanella-Khan, “The Fight for the Future of America’s Local Newspapers,” Financial Times, January 21, 2021, sec. FT Magazine, https://www.ft.com/content/5c22075c-f1af-431d-bf39-becf9c54758b.
Sunny Kim, “How Hedge Funds Took over America’s Struggling Newspaper Industry,” CNBC, June 11, 2021, sec. Media, https://www.cnbc.com/2021/06/11/how-hedge-funds-took-over-americas-struggling-newspaper-industry-.html.
Conor Kelly, “How Alden Global Capital Destroys the News,” Substack Newsletter, The Progressive American with Conor Kelly (blog), September 21, 2023, https://www.progressiveamerican.net/p/how-alden-global-capital-destroys-the-news-dfd791d4066c.